1999 Camry Strut Replacement

I need to replace all four of my struts in my 4 cyl. built in Japan Camry.
I am planning on doing it myself and would like to get some feedback on
what other parts should also be replaced besides the struts themselves.
Also, what brand should I go with? I heard good things about KYB - GR2
struts, and TOKICO HP struts. Not sure which one of those I should to get
or if there are other brands that would work well.
Thanks in advanced.

I did a '93 a few years back -- used the Monroe Sensortrak. They were
better than OEM but not sporty by any means. They came with a rebate on
each so guess that influenced the decision. My combo strut dust boot rubber
spring insulators were dry rotted --- they are about $30 each OEM (I ordered
OEM ones cheaper from one of the online parts places --- like Jay's Toyota).
If I were to do again - I'd probably go with the KYBs. Would be a good time
to replace your rear speakers -- OEMs ones are crap and the rear seat and
parcel shelf has to come out to replace them -- same for the rear struts.

"hamwitty" <ham@witty.com> wrote in message
news:c1eb6575ca6a3204604ff4d621977f4c@localhost.ta lkaboutautos.com...
> Hello all,
>
> I need to replace all four of my struts in my 4 cyl. built in Japan Camry.
> I am planning on doing it myself and would like to get some feedback on
> what other parts should also be replaced besides the struts themselves.
> Also, what brand should I go with? I heard good things about KYB - GR2
> struts, and TOKICO HP struts. Not sure which one of those I should to get
> or if there are other brands that would work well.
> Thanks in advanced.
>

Thanks for your reply. How are the Monroes holding up after a couple of
years?

BTW-When I bought the car brand new in 1999, I hated the sound the that
was comming from the rear speakers. After two weeks of ownership, I
changed them with a couple of 3-way Infinity Speakers. They've been great
ever since!

hamwitty wrote:
|| Thanks for your reply. How are the Monroes holding up after a couple
|| of years?

The rear speaker(s) in my 99 Camry have always sounded fine.

||
|| BTW-When I bought the car brand new in 1999, I hated the sound the
|| that was comming from the rear speakers. After two weeks of
|| ownership, I changed them with a couple of 3-way Infinity Speakers.
|| They've been great ever since!

After 4-5 years Monroes are still ok (clunk initially when real cold) --- I
had them on my 4Rnr too and 2 leaked but I got 4 new replacement ones free
under warranty (just my labor involved).

If you compare the OEM speakers to even mid quality after market ones --
you'll see the huge difference. The OEM ones are really cheap -- even the
option JBL upgraded stereo ones (2003 4rnr SE). A lot of people replace the
radio thinking its bad when its the crappy speakers. I replaced with Sony
Xplode and night and day difference.

"Liberal|sarl|airs| !|" <l$#."''...?|<>; <X.XX=@liberalsarllwankers.com>>
wrote in message news:Ks54e.128430$ZO2.18152@edtnps84...
> hamwitty wrote:
> || Thanks for your reply. How are the Monroes holding up after a couple
> || of years?
>
> The rear speaker(s) in my 99 Camry have always sounded fine.
>
>
> ||
> || BTW-When I bought the car brand new in 1999, I hated the sound the
> || that was comming from the rear speakers. After two weeks of
> || ownership, I changed them with a couple of 3-way Infinity Speakers.
> || They've been great ever since!
>

On Mon, 4 Apr 2005 20:58:13 -0400, "Wolfgang"
<NOwolfgangdieterSPAM@cox.net> wrote:
>If you compare the OEM speakers to even mid quality after market ones --
>you'll see the huge difference. The OEM ones are really cheap -- even the
>option JBL upgraded stereo ones (2003 4rnr SE). A lot of people replace the
>radio thinking its bad when its the crappy speakers. I replaced with Sony
>Xplode and night and day difference.

Sorry for the off-topic but the thread has veered a little...

How hard is it to replace the rear speakers in a '99? I have the
stock units and they do sound kinda low-budget, not a real match for
the Alpine MP3 deck I have.

Not too bad but this is what I went through....The speaker covers are
attached to the rear shelf tray, not
the speakers themselves, and you'll damage something if you try to remove
them.

You need to remove the whole rear shelf tray itself to access the bolts
that hold down the speakers

Start by removing the rear seat cushion--just pull up firmly at the
front edge where the cushion meets the floor on the left and right side.
Next, you may need to also remove the C pillar trim panels on either side
of the rear window.
Then unbolt the two side bolsters for the seat back and fold down the
seatback halves. Remove the center mount stoplight (instructions are in
the bulb replacement section of your owner's manual). Pull the tray
toward the front of the car, leave the shoulder harnesses alone.

You won't be able to remove it completely but should have enough slack
in the belts so you can get it out of the way of the speakers. There
should be 3 screws holding down the OEM speakers. If you go with after
market 6x9s you will have to drill
four new holes. Itís no big deal if you have a 90 degree angle drill,
because the rear window makes it tight. But if you donít Iím sure you
can manage with a regular drill. Then you would reverse the procedure to
reinstall everything.

I got 6 1/2" round 3 way Sony xplod speakers from Crutchfield --- they came
with a plastic mounting bracket that fit the old triangular 3 bolt mounting.
Crutchfield even provides wiring harness and very detailed instructions ---
highly recommend over CC or BB.

"hamwitty" <ham@witty.com> wrote in message
news:8af0519947f50bb1fffd59dc08c182b5@localhost.ta lkaboutautos.com...
> Not too bad but this is what I went through....The speaker covers are
> attached to the rear shelf tray, not
> the speakers themselves, and you'll damage something if you try to remove
> them.
>
> You need to remove the whole rear shelf tray itself to access the bolts
> that hold down the speakers
>
> Start by removing the rear seat cushion--just pull up firmly at the
> front edge where the cushion meets the floor on the left and right side.
> Next, you may need to also remove the C pillar trim panels on either side
> of the rear window.
> Then unbolt the two side bolsters for the seat back and fold down the
> seatback halves. Remove the center mount stoplight (instructions are in
> the bulb replacement section of your owner's manual). Pull the tray
> toward the front of the car, leave the shoulder harnesses alone.
>
> You won't be able to remove it completely but should have enough slack
> in the belts so you can get it out of the way of the speakers. There
> should be 3 screws holding down the OEM speakers. If you go with after
> market 6x9s you will have to drill
> four new holes. It's no big deal if you have a 90 degree angle drill,
> because the rear window makes it tight. But if you don't I'm sure you
> can manage with a regular drill. Then you would reverse the procedure to
> reinstall everything.
>
> Hope this answers your question.
>
>
>

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